Silence. Two pairs of shiny black gnome eyes stared at him.
“My prince speaks Law,” Dattur said, and threw himself down to kiss Arcolin’s boot. Faksutterk bowed very low, and the two gnomes followed Arcolin back through the courtyard. Cobin, one of the recruit sergeants, had already yelled at the curious recruits, and no one stared as they passed.
In his office, he sat down but did not offer either of them a seat. A gnome prince, he thought, might well have chewed them out, but he knew no gnomish curse–words, if they even had such things. He let the silence lengthen as he might for soldiers in trouble, but unlike soldiers, they did not fidget. Rockfolk. Silence and waiting would be no problem for them. He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to gather his thoughts and his still shaky grasp of their language.
“Very well,” he said in slow gnomish. “Faksutterk, you are your prince’s envoy. I gave you welcome. I gave you place to stay. You said it was Lawful.”
“It is Lawful,” Faksutterk said.
“Dattur, you are my hesktak—” Faksutterk shifted as if about to speak; Arcolin stared him into immobility and then went on. “Is it Law that the envoy of another prince be granted guest-space?”
“Yes, my prince.”
“Is it Law that the envoy of another prince be granted food and drink?”
“Yes, my prince.”
“Is it Law that the envoy of another prince be granted all freedom of a stone-right, to go where he will?”
Dattur hesitated. “It is that some princes send same envoy to a prince once and again, and that prince grants them freedom of stone-right. But not all. It is not that Law requires. It is custom under Law.”
“Lord Prince Arcolin.” Faksutterk bowed again. His face had paled to its former level of gray.
“It is permitted to speak,” Arcolin said.
“It is Law Dattur speaks. It is that Lord Prince Aldon would have report of Arcolinfulk gnomes to know health. It is not that Lord Prince Aldon has no trust of Lord Prince Arcolin, but only …” He paused a moment, then went on. “Lord Prince Arcolin is not kapristi in birth and blood. Lord Prince Arcolin has … human knowledge and perhaps has not all knowledge to know … to judge … health of kapristin.”
“This says not about that,” Arcolin said, stumbling among the gnomish for a moment. Dattur opened his mouth, and Arcolin turned his command gaze on Dattur, who subsided.
“Is it that Lord Prince Aldon has said ‘Go see’ or that a report from hesktak is sufficient?”
“Lord Prince Aldon said, ‘Learn if it is that they prosper and if it is not, then if it is that Lord Prince Arcolin, as human, has need of service of instruction.’ It is not said how to learn.”
“Dattur,” Arcolin said in gnomish, “it is that you came to bring word from my kapristin?”
“Yes, my prince.” He glanced aside at the other gnome. “It is word should come to my prince first, but … then share as the prince wills.”
“Excellent.” Arcolin bowed to Faksutterk. “Honor to Lord Prince Aldon for concern for kapristin who should not suffer because a human prince knows too little. Will you wait while Dattur gives me his report?”
“I will.” Faksutterk bowed and withdrew to the hall.
Dattur took a scroll from under his jacket and handed it over. Sure enough, it was a list of the gnomes in the stone-right: age, sex, names. “Five more births since Midwinter,” he said, not waiting for Arcolin to read it.
“So soon?” Arcolin asked. The list was many more than he had expected.
“When kapristin few and work large, then … quicker.”
“All healthy?” Arcolin asked, scanning the document. His mind had difficulty wrapping itself around all the names. Why were some so short—like Lord Prince Aldon—and some so long and hard to say—or hear in the mind, reading silently?
“Very healthy,” Dattur said, dropping now into Common. “Once planted, the misiljit grows rapidly and so food is abundant, and more food makes more … but we do not talk about it.” He shook his head. “But you are my prince, and you need to know. When the kapristinya eat misiljit untainted and abundant, then they can … childer. Many.”
“It is in my heart that Law does not require me to know all about that,” Arcolin said. Arvid had told him one night, late over wine, that he had tried to unremember his one sight of Dattur naked. He would not explain it and the next day claimed not to remember the conversation at all. “But to know that my people gain in number and health pleases me greatly.”
Dattur bowed. “My prince will see that those who came here have a mark by their names. Those names may be known to Faksutterk and Lord Prince Aldon if my—if those once known as Karginfulk sent their report as they should. I had been gone, as my prince knows, for several winters.”